President Barack Obama on Tuesday solemnly watched as US armed forces colors lowered in Iraq last week were returned to American soil in a ceremony marking the end of the near nine-year war.
Obama, the US commander-in-chief, traveled to Joint Base Andrews outside Washington to watch the colors along with 26 air force, navy and army service members in dress uniforms.
Alongside Vice President Joe Biden, Obama greeted the service members and presented each with ceremonial presidential coins.
The president did not speak at the short ceremony, but Deputy Defense Secretary Ashton Carter told the returning servicemembers "we welcome you, we're proud of you, you are in our debt.
"As the president always says, your service belongs to the ages."
The last US soldier of a garrison that once numbered 170,000 left Iraq and entered Kuwait on Sunday.
Their departure ended US involvement in a war that left tens of thousands of Iraqis and nearly 4,500 American soldiers dead, many more wounded, and 1.75 million Iraqis displaced.
Copyright 2011 AFP American Edition
